Method and Apparatus for Winding Webbed Material with Mandrel Position Control

ABSTRACT

A method and apparatus for winding a moving web upon a mandrel is disclosed. A moving web with a leading edge is conveyed towards a mandrel. The mandrel is adapted to allow the moving web to adhere to the mandrel at a specific circumferential location on the mandrel. To enable control of the location of the mandrel, the mandrel further includes a reference input to identify the specific circumferential location. A position sensor is used to determine the position of the reference input. The position of the specific circumferential location of the mandrel is controlled with a position drive control that controls the rotational speed of the mandrel. The position drive control sets the rotational speed of the mandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge of the moving web near the specific circumferential location.

BACKGROUND

Winders are machines that roll lengths of paper, commonly known as paperwebs, into logs. Winders are capable of rolling lengths of web into logsat high speeds through an automated process. Turret winders are wellknown to those skilled in the art. Conventional turret winders contain arotating turret assembly which supports a plurality of mandrels forrotation about a turret axis. The mandrels travel in a circular path ata fixed distance from the turret axis. The mandrels engage hollow coresupon which a paper web can be wound. Typically, the paper web is unwoundfrom a parent roll in a continuous fashion, and the turret winderrewinds the paper web onto the cores supported on the mandrels toprovide individual, relatively small diameter logs. The rolled productlog is then cut to designated lengths into the final product. Finalproducts typically created by these machines and processes are toilettissue rolls, paper toweling rolls, paper rolls, and the like.

The winding technique used in turret winders is known as center winding.A center winding apparatus, for instance, is disclosed in U.S. Pat.Reissue No. 28,353 to Nystrand, which is incorporated in its entiretyherein by reference. In center winding, a mandrel is rotated in order towind a web into a roll/log, either with or without a core. Typically,the core is mounted on a mandrel that rotates at high speeds at thebeginning of a winding cycle and then slows down as the size of therolled product being wound increases, in order to maintain a constantsurface speed, approximately matching web speed. Center winders workwell when the web that is being wound has a printed, textured, orslippery surface. Also, typically, center winders are preferable forefficiently producing soft-wound, higher bulk rolled products.

A problem found in center winders is that they are typically not able toprecisely position the mandrel for transfer. Thus, when using a core onthe mandrel, glue must be applied to the entire circumference of themandrel. This is typically done by applying glue in rings to the surfaceof the core. It can be seen that the spaces between the glue rings donot pick up the sheet which can lead to a missed transfer. Also, it canbe seen that the glue that is not directly at the transfer point is notused and is wasted. A similar issue is present when using vacuum totransfer a sheet to a mandrel. If vacuum holes are spread out on thesurface of the mandrel the overall vacuum level is lower than if theholes are placed in a line. It can be seen that a single line of glue isbetter able to hold a sheet and maximizing the effectiveness of the glueused. When a coreless mandrel is used with holes spread out on thesurface of the mandrel, failure to securely attach to the mandrel maycause waste in the system or even potential machine shut-down. Thus,there is a need to provide an apparatus and method that controls therotational mandrel position to allow for more precise control andefficient operation of the winder.

SUMMARY

A method and apparatus for winding a moving web upon a mandrel withmandrel position control is disclosed. An attachment means is placedlongitudinally along the length of the mandrel at a specificcircumferential location on the mandrel, wherein the registration of themandrel with the drive control facilitates the subsequent placement ofmoving web at the specific circumferential location upon the outerperiphery of the mandrel. This process enables adhesion of the movingweb to the mandrel at a predetermined and specific location. The systemis designed to reduce cost, increase production output, and avoid excesswaste of adhesive. Specifically, a moving web with a leading edge isconveyed towards a mandrel. The mandrel is adapted to allow the movingweb to adhere to the mandrel at a specific circumferential location onthe mandrel. The specific circumferential location is an axial orlongitudinal area along the length of the mandrel. To enable control ofthe location of the mandrel, the mandrel further includes a referenceinput to identify the specific circumferential location. A positionsensor is used to determine the position of the reference input. Theposition of the specific circumferential location of the mandrel iscontrolled with a position drive control that controls the rotationalspeed of the mandrel by torque applied at one or each end of themandrel. The position drive control sets the rotational speed of themandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge of the moving web near thespecific circumferential location.

The transfer typically occurs so that the moving web attaches to themandrel within plus or minus 15 degrees of rotation of the specificcircumferential location. More desirably, transfer typically occurs sothat the moving web attaches to the mandrel within plus or minus 10degrees of rotation of the leading edge of the sheet for a good corelesstransfer on a coreless execution or cored transfer when using cores.

A method and apparatus for winding a moving web upon a mandrel withmandrel position control may be utilized to produce a coreless product.A “coreless” product is one which does not have a separate, relativelyrigid, independent, non-tissue core component, such as a cylindricalcardboard core typically used for commercially available tissueproducts. In this type of product, the process includes controlling therotational speed of the mandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge ofthe moving web near a strip of vacuum openings or engagement fingers forthe specific circumferential location.

A method and apparatus for winding a moving web upon a mandrel withmandrel position control may be utilized to produce a traditional rolledproduct with a core. In this type of product, the process includesloading a core onto the mandrel, and controlling the rotational speed ofthe mandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge of the moving web neara strip of adhesive for the specific circumferential location. Theadhesive for this method is arranged on the surface of the core in asubstantially linear fashion parallel to the axis of the mandrel. Theglue line can be continuous or discontinuous if less adhesion is needed.

BRIEF DESCRIPTION

A full and enabling disclosure thereof, directed to one of ordinaryskill in the art, is set forth more particularly in the remainder of thespecification, which makes reference to the appended figures in which:

FIG. 1 illustrates a schematic view of a rewinder using the mandrelposition control of this invention; and

FIG. 2 illustrates a schematic view of a mandrel for use in theembodiment depicted in FIG. 1.

DETAILED DESCRIPTION

Reference now will be made in detail to various embodiments of theinvention, one or more examples of which are set forth below. Eachexample is provided by way of explanation, not limitation. In fact, itwill be apparent to those skilled in the art that various modificationsand variations may be made in the present disclosure without departingfrom the scope or spirit of the claims. For instance, featuresillustrated or described as part of one embodiment, may be used onanother embodiment to yield a still further embodiment. Thus, it isintended that the claims cover such modifications and variations.

As described above, as moving webs of material are manufactured into arolled product on various types of winders, the moving web needs to beplaced onto the mandrel.

Generally, a method and apparatus for winding a moving web upon amandrel is disclosed. A moving web with a leading edge is conveyedtowards a mandrel. The mandrel is adapted to allow the moving web toadhere to the mandrel at a specific circumferential location on themandrel. The specific circumferential location is an axial orlongitudinal area along the length of the mandrel. This axial orlongitudinal area along the length of the core could be a plurality ofengagement fingers, a plurality of openings which can be used forvacuum, or a line of adhesive on a core to enable the moving web toadhere to the mandrel for winding.

To enable control of the location of the mandrel, the mandrel furtherincludes a reference input to identify the specific circumferentiallocation. The reference input may be a flag or a marking thatcorresponds to the specific circumferential location on the mandrel. Aposition sensor is used to determine the position of the referenceinput. It is also possible that the specific circumferential positioncan be detected using an imaging system as the position sensor that cananalyze a video signal of the mandrel rotation as well as the positionof the leading edge of the moving web.

The position of the specific circumferential location of the mandrel iscontrolled with a position drive control to control the rotational speedof the mandrel using torque applied at one or each end of the mandrel.In one application, a belt and pulley system may be used to apply torqueto the mandrel. Desirably, the mandrel is attached to a pulley andengaged by a flat metered winding belt. The flat metered winding belt isdriven by a metered winding drive pulley. Other position drive controlsmay be used including, but not limited to, timing belts, gearing orpulleys, rotational surface friction, magnetic flux, and other meansknown by persons of skill in the art. The position drive control setsthe rotational speed of the mandrel to allow transfer of the leadingedge of the moving web near the specific circumferential location.

A rolled product is then created by winding the moving web on themandrel into a finished rolled product. The mandrel is rotated atchanging rotational velocity so that the web speed and the windingprofile may be controlled as the rolled product builds. In most cases,the axial position of the mandrel may change gradually by mechanicalmeans such as conveyor or timing belt drive speed changes, cam track, ora rocker arm as the log diameter increases to minimize web interferencewith machine components during winding. Then, when the desired length ofwebbed material has been wound upon the cored mandrel into a finishedlog, the web is severed and transferred to another incoming coredmandrel by standard bed roll means and the process begins once again onthe next successive mandrel.

The roll is spirally wound from the hole in the center of the roll tothe outside, but effectively the roll can be thought to consist of alarge number of windings, which are the individual layers or sheetsbetween the axis and the outer surface as measured along a radialdirection. A single winding represents the sheet being wound once aroundthe roll. Typically, bath tissue rolls made from through-air driedtissue have from about 150 to about 250 windings per roll. The actualnumber of windings will depend upon the sheet count, the final desireddiameter of the roll and the thickness of the tissue sheets, but theseare typical values for commonly made products available for consumers.Similarly, single-ply paper towels made from through-air dried tissuehave from about 50 to about 150 windings per roll.

The disclosed method of mandrel position control is based on finding aspecific circumferential location or position on the mandrel. A meansfor identifying this specific circumferential location or position onthe mandrel is incorporated on the mandrel. Specifically, a mandrelrotational position sensor that is mounted on the machine frame detectsthe reference input on the mandrel to indicate to the control of themachine where the specific circumferential location is currentlysituated.

In typical applications, the exact position of the mandrel is lostduring removal of the wound roll and needs to be found by the sensor tore-establish the circumferential position. The mandrel is turned slowlyuntil the mandrel rotational position sensor detects the reference inputon the mandrel and stops. At this point the mandrel is in a knownrotational position. The machine controls are then programmed with aspecific winding cam that caused the flat drive belt to be moved inorder to place the specific circumferential position in the properrotational position to be in time with the leading edge of the sheet forproper transfer.

Transfer typically occurs so that the moving web attaches to the mandrelwithin plus or minus 15 degrees of rotation of the specificcircumferential location. More desirably, transfer typically occurs sothat the moving web attaches to the mandrel within plus or minus 10degrees of rotation of the leading edge of the sheet for a good corelesstransfer on a coreless execution or cored transfer when using cores.

Typical center winder operations do not detect the mandrel position anddo not place the mandrel rotational position in the proper time with theleading edge of the sheet. The conventional operation requires rings ofadhesive around a typical core for transfer of the sheet to the mandrel.

The disclosed method and apparatus also differs from a standardregistration system that senses an eye mark or registration mark. Thesesystems typically sense a position of the sheet and then advance orretard the sheet or the mandrel position to correct for positionmismatches by comparing the two relative to each other. The mandrelposition would have to be known or always in contact with a drive meansso that its position is always known. This is not the case in the methodand apparatus described herein since the mandrel is not in contact withthe drive belt for a significant portion of the turret movement. Thisregistration feature could be added as an additional feature for themandrel position control above using an imaging system to comparemandrel position and the sheet leading edge for fine tuning.

FIG. 1 illustrates a center rewinder 100 with a turret assembly 110 thatmay be employed in the method of winding a web disclosed herein. Turretassemblies are well known to those skilled in the art to be useful forwinding paper onto a mandrel. In general, turret assemblies ofteninclude at least one mandrel that is rotatably affixed to an indexingmechanism. The indexing mechanism, or turret, can rotate a mandrel intoa number of positions or “stations” at which various steps of thewinding process can occur. For instance, at one position, the moving webcan be attached to the mandrel. At another position, the moving web canbe wound around the mandrel. And, at yet another position, the woundrolled product can be removed from the mandrel. Any turret assemblyknown to those skilled in the art is suitable for use in the presentinvention. Examples of various turret assemblies that can be used in thepresent invention include, but are not limited to, the turret assembliesdescribed in U.S. Pat. No. 4,133,495 to Dowd; U.S. Pat. No. 5,337,968 toDe Bin et al.; and U.S. Pat. No. 5,797,559 to Coffey, which areincorporated in their entirety herein by reference. Other windingsystems that may be used in accordance with the present disclosureinclude the winders disclosed in U.S. Patent Application Publication No.US2003/0160127 to Wojcik et al., U.S. Pat. No. 7,909,282 to Wojcik etal., and U.S. Pat. No. 8,042,761 to Wojcik et al., which are allincorporated herein by reference.

In this embodiment, a bedroll 102 defines a conveying surface 104 of thecenter winder 100. In an exemplary embodiment, the bedroll 102 rotatingin the direction of the arrow represented by arrow 103 may also be avacuum transfer roll utilized to hold the moving web 136 on theconveying surface of the rotating roll 102. The moving web is moving inthe direction of the arrow represented by number 101. A web cut-offassembly 190 is mounted in proximity to the bedroll 102 to cause a breakin the moving web 136 when a web break is desired.

The turret assembly 110 is rotatably mounted below the bedroll 102 androtating in the direction of the arrow represented by number 107. Theturret assembly 110 further includes a plurality of rotating mandrelssuch as winding position mandrel 112 where paper is wound upon a core.Typically, the centerline of the turret is directly in line with thecenterline of the bedroll.

The winding position defined as the “core load position,” which is theposition occupied by mandrel 113. In this position, on at least one endof the mandrel, a mandrel pulley 146 is attached to at least one end ofthe mandrel 113. The mandrel pulley 146 interacts with the positiondrive control 140 to control the rotational speed of the mandrel bytorque applied at one or each end of the mandrel.

In embodiments where a core is desired to be included with the finalrolled product, the winding process can be initiated by the “core loadposition,” by first placing a core onto the mandrel according to anymethod known in the art. Once the core is placed onto mandrel 113, theturret assembly 110 can then be indexed into an “adhesive applicationposition,” which is the position occupied by mandrel 114. In particular,an adhesive can be applied to the specific circumferential position byany method known in the art to the core. Generally, the adhesive usedcan comprise any of a variety of materials, such as glue, known toadhere paper to a surface. Although not necessarily required, such anadhesive facilitates attachment of the paper web onto a core. Whilerings of adhesive are usually places on the core in this position, it isalso possible to apply a line of adhesive at the reference position. Itis typical to have a small drive (not shown) to slowly rotate the coredmandrel to apply glue. The same drive can be used to index the core tothe correct position to apply a line of adhesive.

In coreless executions of the rolled product, no core or adhesive isplaced onto the mandrel. Alternative attachment means such as vacuumsuction or temporary mechanical attachments described in more detailbelow are used to adhere the moving web to the specific circumferentiallocation.

Once adhesive or other attachment means is applied to the mandrel, themandrel can be indexed by turret 110 into the “pre-spin position,” whichis the position occupied by mandrel 116. At this position, the specificcircumferential location of the mandrel is controlled to allow transferof the leading edge of the moving web near the specific circumferentiallocation. To enable control of the location of the mandrel, the mandrelfurther includes a reference input 138 as illustrated in FIG. 2 toidentify the specific circumferential location. The reference input 138may be a flag or a marking that corresponds to the specificcircumferential location on the mandrel. A position sensor 156 is usedto determine the position of the reference input 138.

The position of the specific circumferential location of the mandrel iscontrolled with a position drive control 140 to control the rotationalspeed of the mandrel using torque applied at one or each end of themandrel. In one application, a belt and pulley system may be used toapply torque to the mandrel. Desirably, the mandrel is attached to apulley 146 that engages by a flat metered winding belt 142. The flatmetered winding belt 142 is driven by a metered winding drive pulley144. The position drive control 140 sets the rotational speed of themandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge of the moving web near thespecific circumferential location. The position drive control 140 isonly in contact with the mandrel at the “pre-spin position,” the“winding position” and until just before the “tail-seal position,” andnot in contact with the mandrel throughout the turret assembly. Thisrequires the mandrel position control system 100 to interact with themandrel and find the position of the reference input to match theleading edge of the sheet each time.

It is important to note that only one flat metered winding belt 146 isshown in FIG. 1 to illustrate the principle of this invention. There areactually two metered winding belts on a machine to allow winding on theprevious mandrel in position 112 while the next mandrel is in the“pre-spin position” getting up to the operating speed in preparation fortransfer.

At the “pre-spin position,” the mandrel may then be rotated to ensurethat the mandrel achieves a certain rotational speed before the paperweb is wound thereon. The mandrel 26, for instance, can be acceleratedto a speed wherein the surface speed of the mandrel substantiallymatches the surface speed of the web 136. For instance, the mandrel maybe rotated at a speed that is equal to, slightly greater than orslightly less than the speed of the moving web. As used herein, forinstance, indicating that the mandrel is accelerated to a rotationalspeed that is “substantially” equal to a speed at which the tissue sheetis moving refers to the fact that the mandrel speed is within about 10percent of the speed of the tissue sheet. In other embodiments, however,the mandrel speed may be within about 5 percent, such as within about 2percent of the speed of the tissue sheet. In still another embodiment,the mandrel may be accelerated so as to be at the same speed or slightlygreater than the speed of the tissue web. Additionally, the mandrel isindexed at the moment of transfer so that the specific circumferentialposition may meet the leading edge of the moving web.

Once the mandrel is set into the proper location at the “pre-spinposition” so that the specific circumferential position may meet theleading edge of the moving web, the mandrel can then be indexed by theturret assembly 110 into the “winding position,” which is the positionoccupied by mandrel 112. A transfer device 127 may be used to move themoving web 136 from the bedroll 102 to the turret assembly 110 near thespecific circumferential position of the mandrel 112. The transferdevice 127 can be mounted onto a bearing and driven by any suitabledriving device 129, such as an actuating cylinder as is illustrated inFIG. 1 or a cam mechanism.

The rotational speed of the mandrel imparted at the “pre-spin position,”is generally greater than the feed speed of the paper web such that, asthe rotating mandrel is indexed into the “winding position,” the paperweb can wind around the mandrel. Moreover, mandrel 112, for example, canbe further rotated in a clockwise direction, while in the “windingposition”, such that moving web 136 can be wound thereon. In someembodiments, the rotational speed of mandrel 112 can be controlled suchthat the surface speed of the winding log maintains a substantiallyconstant rate from the time that it first contacts the leading edge ofpaper web 136 until the end of the winding period. After winding of theweb is complete, the web cut-off assembly 190 acts to break the movingweb to create a new rolled product.

After the moving web 136 is wound onto the mandrel, it can then befurther indexed by turret 110 into a “tail seal position”, which is theposition occupied by mandrel 118. At the “tail seal position”, theunattached portions of web 136 can be sealed to the roll of paper via asealing device (not shown). In some embodiments, for example, thesealing device can be configured to apply glue or some other adhesive tothe paper web such that the tail can be sealed thereto. An external roll(not shown) can also be used for rotating mandrel 118 at the “tail sealposition,” of this embodiment. As such, mandrel 118 can rotate at aslower speed, which can aid in the sealing process. In manyapplications, the tail seal is done on a separate tail sealing machinethat is outside the rewinder.

Once sealed, the finished rolled product can then be removed. In someembodiments, mandrel containing a finished roll of paper can be indexedby turret 110 into a “removal position,” which is the position occupiedby mandrel 120. A finished roll product can be axially removed frommandrel 120 by any method known in the art.

As described throughout the application, the mandrel is adapted toprovide an attachment means to allow the moving web to adhere to thespecific circumferential location 150 on the mandrel. As illustrated inFIG. 2, this specific circumferential location 150 is an axial orlongitudinal area along the length of the mandrel. This axial orlongitudinal area along the length of the mandrel 134 could be aplurality of engagement fingers, a plurality of openings, or a line ofadhesive to enable the moving web to adhere to the mandrel for winding.Corresponding with the specific circumferential location 150 isreference input 138 that interacts with the position sensor to enablethe mandrel control system 100 to correctly position the mandrel.

For one embodiment of coreless tissue products, in order to assist inplacing the tissue web on the mandrel 134 the specific circumferentiallocation 150 may include a plurality of openings and may be incommunication with a vacuum source. In this manner, the mandrel forms asuction against the tissue web in order to at least initiate winding. Inthe case of a vacuum mandrel, the leading edge or slighted after theleading edge of the tissue web is lightly wetted prior to contact withthe mandrel. Lightly wetting the tissue web allows for hydrogen bonds toform between the layers of the tissue web that are directly adjacent tothe mandrel. The light hydrogen bonding allows for a passageway to beformed into the roll or log of material without compromising the tissueweb. The layers of the tissue web are lightly bonded such that thelayers can be separated during later use.

For another embodiment of coreless tissue products, in order to assistin placing the tissue web on the mandrel 134 the specificcircumferential location 150 may include a plurality of retractable pinsor engagement fingers. The retractable engagement fingers extend fromthe surface of the mandrel and perforate the tissue web for winding,such that the pins perforate two or more windings of the resulting rollof tissue, thereby forming a soft core. The engagement fingers need tobe removed from the rolled product once finished to allow removal of thelog. The engagement fingers are sharp, pointed, generally elongatedtapered structures that are capable of piercing at least two windings ofa tissue web. In general, the base of the engagement finger needs to besufficiently large to provide the necessary strength needed to withstandthe demands of high speed commercial manufacturing, where the mandrelsrotate at speeds of from about 3000 to about 6000 revolutions per minutedepending on sheet speed and mandrel diameter. The tips of theengagement fingers, which must also have sufficient strength anddurability, are as sharp as reasonably possible in order to easily punchthrough sheets of tissue during the winding operation. In cross-section,the engagement fingers can be any shape, such as round, elliptical,square, triangular, etc. The length of the engagement fingers, asmeasured from the surface of the mandrel to the tip of the engagementfinger, can be from about 0.1 to about 0.4 inch. The base of theengagement fingers can be from about 0.1 to about 0.3 inch in width.Testing has shown that the tip of the engagement finger needs to besharp to penetrate the sheet. Suitable shapes for the engagement fingerwould be a pyramid or a cone ending at a tip. In all cases theengagement finger tapers in all directions to a point. A frustum of apyramid or cone, where the tip has a significant width, would not besuitable for use as an engagement finger because such structures wouldnot penetrate more than one sheet, if at all. By way of example, atypical engagement finger suitable for purposes herein will have a pointcomparable to that of the transfer engagement fingers currently used inthe bedroll of rewinder lines, such as those manufactured by the PaperConverting Machine Company, Green Bay, Wis. Another more common exampleis that the sharpness of the engagement finger would be similar to acommon safety thumb tack. A suitable material for making the engagementfingers includes spring steel hardened to about 40 on the Rockwell “C”scale. This level of hardening provides good durability and wearresistance.

In the embodiment with a product including a core, in order to assist inplacing the tissue web on the mandrel 134 the specific circumferentiallocation 150 may include a line of adhesive. The speed of the overallprocess may be increased by applying glue axially along the length ofthe core. For example, prior art methods which applied glue to theentire exterior surface of the core, all the way around thecircumference, tended to be wasteful and caused maintenance clean upproblems due to excessive amounts of glue being thrown by centrifugalforce upon the machinery during core rotation. The adhesive may beapplied in a solid line or a series of solid lines, or may be applied inan interrupted line. Only the amount of adhesive actually needed toadhere paper to the core is provided.

In another embodiment, a mandrel is permanently attached to a drivemechanism and the position of the circumferential location 150 is knownat all times. It is then possible to synchronize the leading edge of thesheet with the circumferential location at all times without the need tofind the reference mark on the mandrel.

Other modifications and variations to the appended claims may bepracticed by those of ordinary skill in the art, without departing fromthe spirit and scope as set forth in the appended claims. It isunderstood that features of the various examples may be interchanged inwhole or part. The preceding description, given by way of example inorder to enable one of ordinary skill in the art to practice the claimedinvention, is not to be construed as limiting the scope of theinvention, which is defined by the claims and all equivalents thereto.

What is claimed is:
 1. A method of winding a moving web upon a mandrelcomprising: conveying a moving web having a leading edge; providing amandrel, the mandrel being adapted to adhere the moving web at aspecific circumferential location on the mandrel, the mandrel furtherincluding a reference input to identify the specific circumferentiallocation; engaging the mandrel with a position drive control to controlthe rotational speed of the mandrel; determining the position of thereference input with a position sensor; setting the rotational speed ofthe mandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge of the moving web nearthe specific circumferential location; transferring the moving web tothe mandrel near the specific circumferential location; and winding themoving web.
 2. The method of claim 1 wherein the mandrel is a corelessmandrel.
 3. The method of claim 2 wherein the specific circumferentiallocation on the mandrel is a line of vacuum openings.
 4. The method ofclaim 2 wherein the specific circumferential location on the mandrel isa line of engagement fingers.
 5. The method of claim 1 furthercomprising loading a core onto the mandrel, and wherein the specificcircumferential location on the mandrel is a strip of adhesive.
 6. Themethod of claim 1 wherein transfer of the moving web to the mandrel nearthe specific circumferential location occurs within plus or minus 15degrees of rotation of the specific circumferential location.
 7. Themethod of claim 1 wherein transfer of the moving web to the mandrel nearthe specific circumferential location occurs within plus or minus 10degrees of rotation of the specific circumferential location.
 8. Themethod of claim 1 further comprising a registration system including animaging system, wherein the imaging system senses a position of theleading edge of the moving web, compares the position of the leadingedge of the moving web to the specific circumferential location, andthen alters the position of the leading edge of the moving web or thespecific circumferential location to correct for a position mismatch. 9.An apparatus for winding a moving web upon a mandrel comprising; aconveying surface for conveying a moving web; a mandrel, the mandrelbeing adapted to receive the moving web at a specific circumferentiallocation on the mandrel, the mandrel further including a reference inputto identify the specific circumferential location; a position sensor todetermine the position of the reference input; and a position drivecontrol to control the rotational speed of the mandrel.
 10. Theapparatus of claim 9 wherein the mandrel is a coreless mandrel.
 11. Theapparatus of claim 10 wherein the specific circumferential location onthe mandrel is a line of vacuum openings.
 12. The apparatus of claim 10wherein the specific circumferential location on the mandrel is a lineof engagement fingers.
 13. The apparatus of claim 9 further comprisingloading a core onto the mandrel, and wherein the specificcircumferential location on the mandrel is a strip of adhesive.
 14. Theapparatus of claim 9 wherein transfer of the moving web to the mandrelnear the specific circumferential location occurs within plus or minus15 degrees of rotation of the specific circumferential location.
 15. Theapparatus of claim 9 wherein transfer of the moving web to the mandrelnear the specific circumferential location occurs within plus or minus10 degrees of rotation of the specific circumferential location.
 16. Theapparatus of claim 9 further comprising a registration system includingan imaging system, wherein the imaging system senses a position of theleading edge of the moving web, compares the position of the leadingedge of the moving web to the specific circumferential location, andthen alters the position of the leading edge of the moving web or thespecific circumferential location to correct for a position mismatch.17. A process for producing a rolled product comprising: conveying amoving web having a leading edge; providing a mandrel, the mandrel beingadapted to adhere the moving web at a specific circumferential locationon the mandrel; engaging the mandrel with a position drive control tocontrol the rotational speed of the mandrel; setting the rotationalspeed of the mandrel to allow transfer of the leading edge of the movingweb near the specific circumferential location; transferring the movingweb to the mandrel near the specific circumferential location; windingthe moving web on the mandrel into a rolled product; cutting the movingweb to complete the rolled product; and stripping the rolled productfrom the mandrel.
 18. The process of claim 17 wherein the mandrel is acoreless mandrel.
 19. The process of claim 18 wherein the specificcircumferential location on the mandrel is a line of vacuum openings.20. The process of claim 18 wherein the specific circumferentiallocation on the mandrel is a line of engagement fingers.
 21. The processof claim 17 further comprising loading a core onto the mandrel, andwherein the specific circumferential location on the mandrel is a stripof adhesive.
 22. The process of claim 17 wherein transfer of the movingweb to the mandrel near the specific circumferential location occurswithin plus or minus 15 degrees of rotation of the specificcircumferential location.
 23. The process of claim 17 wherein transferof the moving web to the mandrel near the specific circumferentiallocation occurs within plus or minus 10 degrees of rotation of thespecific circumferential location.
 24. The process of claim 17 furthercomprising a registration system including an imaging system, whereinthe imaging system senses a position of the leading edge of the movingweb, compares the position of the leading edge of the moving web to thespecific circumferential location, and then alters the position of theleading edge of the moving web or the specific circumferential locationto correct for a position mismatch.